A NEW SERVICE TO HEART OF LONDON

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27403, 16 July 1954, Page 10

A NEW SERVICE TO HEART OF LONDON

HELICOPTERS

[By

PETER MASEFIELD,

Chief Executive, British European 4<ntqjJ [Printed by arrangement with the “Sunday Times”]

Helicopters are very much in the news. Helicopters may now fly up—or down —the Thames and alight at the South Bank’s temporary "rotorstation. There are still available, however, only single-engined helicopters on land undercarriages. And sooner or later one of them will have to make a forced alighting in the river or, if it is lucky, on an open space on the bank. From 500 feet, after engine failure, a singleengine helicopter has to put down in 30 seconds somewhere within a circle roughly half a mile in diameter. That does not give much time or much choice. .. , „ For this reason British European Airways, as a matter of policy, will not operate scheduled helicopter services into the centre of London with single-engine landplanes. The company is. however, pushing forward with plans for a scheduled service using Westland-Sikorsky 5.55 singleengine helicopters on amphibian, float undercarriages. These machines would, in the event of engine failure, sit down on the river without danger. Normally, they will operate to and from land. The floats cut down the normal cruising speed from 80 miles an hour to 70 miles an hour and reduce the payload from seven passengers to five. That is the price of essential safety on a public service. The 5.55 service will provide an 18minute link eight times a day between the centre of London and London airport, 19 miles away by the river route. It will not be economic. The 5.55 on floats has a direct operating cost of about £1 a mile. A passenger fare of £2 would give a return of just under 7s 6d a mile with a reasonable average load. So each round trip will lose about £25 on direct costs —perhaps £5O with overheads. That loss of, say, £4OO a day is the cost of introducing a new form of transport safely into public service ahead of the production of an economic vehicle. It is the cost of “priming the pump”—essential to future progress.

The next stage—and the stage to which concentration must be given—is to produce large twin-engine transport helicopters and get them into scheduled commercial service. Looking Ahead * The earliest date at which the only twin-engine British helicopter yet flying—the Bristol 173—could be flown economically with passengers, now looks like 1959. Ahead of that will, on present form, come the American Sikorsky S.s6—a twin-engine type able to carry 30 passengers and their' baggage between London and Paris—the first helicopter capable of operating, safely, across the Channel and performing the proper role of the helicopter, linking two city centres without change of vehicle. The 5.56 will be much more economic to operate than the S.ss—but even so, a good deal more expensive than fixed-wing aircraft of today. Estimates suggest that, to cover all costs, a high-frequenev helicopter service between London and Paris operated by S.s6’s would have tp charge a oneway fare of about £l4. This compares with, the present first-class oneway air fare of £8 17s. The helicopter would cut the journey-time by about one hour. There is hope for a substantial improvement later. The 5.56. with Bri-

tish turbine engines-such >. « pier Eland—would be a expensive to operate. BjtT? the 40-passenger Fairey Rot^ ttei promise not only o f reducta/S a great deal more, but alS e at twice the speed of thes°i liminary estimates indicate .i even one-way fare of £in V London and Paris and a ini.J* between city centres cut tn *2? five minutes, compared with total elapsed time of three aL" quarter hours. I This is encouraging ,-j promise of bringing i n a “S demand for helicopter serving these are two snags. First it' Commercial Rotodynes are on the drawing boards. ThJl ?o°re PaSSenger Noisy Second—noise. The Rnt^.. inevitably. be much nofetefe sent helicopters because of a creased power delivered at • and landing, t trough jeti at of the rotor blades. Already . small helicopters have cauid' 11 tain amount of criticism i-nJ sensitive to unusual noises n hope, however, that the new ? powered helicopters of the futi»! be able to adopt an oper|tS mque which will render th,; troublesome in this respect . rate of vertical climb will to 1000 feet in less than a ra nu ,, take-off while still almost over •‘rotorstation A steep X course will f mn take them o ™, dential areas at no less a heieh is flown by fixed-wing aircraft. What is needed to replace' ground-level South Bank site is top “rotorstation. ’’ which wii once provide an area free from ™ level wind-turbulence and ohstS and an alighting area more n from street-level echoes. The r a railway station, suitably st™ ened and near a river, would idea!, with Waterloo a strong date. We must make up our, where it shall be—and soon Let me now sum up the pr™ as I see them: (1) By the spring of next, regular, but costly, services London airport to the South by single-engine six-passenger copters, on floats for safety <2l By 1958, 30-passenger ■ engine helicopters beginning ■ from London to Paris, Amste Brussels. Manchester and Bit ham at 110 m.p.h. at fares whi be economic, would have to n about one shilling a mile to passenger. <3) By 1962, 40-passenger tic powered British helicopters cr at 200 m.p.h., making possible i tensive network of helicopter i at fares cut to tenpence a pas, mile.

What is required? Enthusiast termination, money, ’ foresight military interest in parallel wii civil requirements: patience an: technical luck which has help?-, great developments. One thing helicopter has done already-it captured public imaginationwith public support, almost ar: is possible.